


Shine

by sedanlon



Category: IT (2017), Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Crossover, Multi, Post-Movie, Post-Season 2
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-11-30
Updated: 2017-11-30
Packaged: 2019-02-08 19:48:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Underage
Chapters: 5
Words: 6,206
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12871746
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sedanlon/pseuds/sedanlon
Summary: Will Byers has always been different, but when he has a dream about seven kids who defeated an evil they called IT and suddenly the girl shows up in Hawkins, he is more concerned about what's up with him. He speaks to this girl, Beverly, and with her help he unites The Party with her group, The Losers, to save Hawkins, and perhaps the world, from a greater evil.





	1. I

“Fear.”  
Will Byers woke up in a cold sweat. It was the same dream from the night before. There were seven kids in the sewer, or this demented house- it varied throughout the course of the dream- and they were all teaming up against this clown, though the thing could hardly be qualified as just that. It, as he had come to know it, was a shapeshifter that would take your worst fears and make them a reality right before your eyes.  
That wasn't what always caught him off guard, though. It was the detail of the dream; how real it felt. Having it two nights in a row was even more unsettling. It was as if it were a sign; just the thing Will tried to avoid. He rolled over in bed and pulled his sheets up higher; it was autumn, after all, and that meant nighttime was freezing, even colder than the day usually was.  
He tried to recall the kids from his dream, and after a moment’s contemplation, flicked on his light, got some paper, and started to draw them as they were etched in his mind. One in particular stood out. She was the only girl in the group, and her hair matched the colours of the season, a vibrant ginger that put the leaves falling from the trees to shame.  
There was also a kid with a cast who had used an inhaler at one point, and another with glasses that made his eyes bug (This one looked oddly like Mike, Will noticed), and a kid who was admittedly a bit overweight with sort of sandy hair. Then there was a boy who stuttered a lot, and another who had rather curly hair, significantly curlier than most of the others, not the girl but everyone else, and a black boy. These were the seven he had seen last night and just a few minutes ago.  
He was still drawing them when the sun came up, and when his mom came in to have him get up for school.  
She opened the door to his bedroom with a soft call of “It's time to get up, buddy- Will? What're you doing up already, bud?”   
He turned back to face her. “I woke up last night and couldn't get back to sleep. There was an art overflow in my brain,” he explained to her.  
“Oh, okay. Nothing from the Upside Down, right?”  
“Mom, I'm fine,”  
“I'm just making sure, honey, you know I worry,”  
“Yeah… I know,”  
“If you're sure you're okay, get ready for school. I have to head out. Love you,” Joyce came and planted a kiss on Will’s forehead before walking out of his room.

When Will got to school, his friends were waiting for him. Even Eleven, or Jane, had started coming to school with them a few months after the Mind Flayer attack. And there was Max, the newest member of their party and basically Lucas’ girlfriend (although they both denied it). Then of course there were the usual suspects, Mike, Lucas, and Dustin.  
“Will!” Mike exclaimed in greeting, followed by a chorus of hellos and what ups from the others.  
“Hi, guys,” Will greeted, smiling.  
“You look pretty tired. Sleep okay?”  
“Yeah, yeah, just woke up early. Had a dream that left me needing to draw.”  
Everyone seemed greatly concerned by this. It had been this way ever since the first time he had become victim to the Upside Down’s creatures, but after the second time everyone seemed on edge all the time.  
El was the first to actually say something. “What was the dream?” she asked.  
“I had it two nights in a row, actually. These seven kids defeating a shapeshifter who usually takes the form of a clown in a sewer. It's not really disturbing, but it feels really real and I don't know why I've had it two nights in a row now,” he replied.  
“This sounds like some weird voodoo shit,” Max comments as the bell to head inside rings.  
Will sighs. It wasn't voodoo shit, but it wasn't normal either.  
“Isn't there supposed to be a new kid at school today? From Maine?” Dustin asks.  
Lucas and Max frown simultaneously. “Dunno,” Lucas says.  
“If there is that'd be the third new kid this year,” Mike observes, walking through the door to their class and heading to his seat. “Do we even have room for another new kid?”  
Will sits next to him and shrugs. “No clue,”  
Once everyone was seated, their questions were answered. Dustin had been right. There was a girl with ginger curls that fell messily around her face. Her freckles were dusted unevenly across her face, and she had pale blue eyes that seemed oddly familiar to Will. The giveaway to him was her clothes. The unmistakable overalls, these ones long and olive green, with a maroon long sleeve and a heavy jean jacket. This was the girl from his dream.  
“Everyone, this is our new student, Beverly Marsh. Anything you wanna say about yourself, Beverly?”  
She looked around the class, as if observing each of them and decided prematurely who was safe and who wasn't. “I'm… From a small town like this in Maine. I had to move because of current family situations. I probably won't be around long, so don't get used to me,”  
Odd thing to say, Will thought. She seemed to have a plan for every step of her life, this one being a small part of getting to her main goal. She went to go sit down in the new open seat, right behind El, who was on Mike’s other side.  
Will needed to tell someone he'd seen this Beverly girl before. He leaned over to Mike.  
“You know I'm not usually one to distract from class, but Beverly? She was in my dream from the other night. Remind me and I'll show you the drawings later,” he whispered. Mike made a face first of confusion, then of curiosity. He nodded and mouthed ‘Okay’ before turning to pay attention to their teacher. Will followed suit.

It was a long day, and painfully so. Will just wanted to show everyone the drawings from that night. He'd relayed the message he told Mike to everyone else throughout the day and it seemed everyone was eager to see this premonition of a drawing. They were by the bikes when everyone asked the question: “Can we see now?!”  
Will was happy to oblige, and he pulled out a small folder of his drawings. Normally he wouldn't have brought them, but he did today and he was glad.  
The first drawing was of Beverly herself, wearing something very similar to her outfit from today, which was bizarre to everyone.  
“Don't you think it's weird? This is weird. Why would Will dream about this girl right before she showed up at our school?” Dustin inquired  
“We don't know yet, Dustin, but we're gonna figure it out. We always do.” Lucas responded. Mike nodded, an mmhm of agreement coming from his lips.   
Will smiled, glad to know his friends were ready for another mystery.


	2. II

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will Byers has always been different, but when he has a dream about seven kids who defeated an evil they called IT and suddenly the girl shows up in Hawkins, he is more concerned about what's up with him. He speaks to this girl, Beverly, and with her help he unites The Party with her group, The Losers, to save Hawkins, and perhaps the world, from a greater evil.

It was the next day when Will decided he was going to talk to Beverly Marsh. He'd had the dream again that night, but this time there were some less than desirable details added. Thankfully, those weren't so real as the rest of the dream.  
He saw her walking into school, but wasn't sure what to say, so he waited. The next moment was before class, but he chickened out and waited. By lunch he was feeling like maybe he could wait a few more days, but when he told his friends they insisted he at least try today.  
“If we hadn't talked to Max at her locker that first day she probably wouldn't be here now. Don't lose your chance!” Lucas had said.  
Will wasn't so sure he even had a chance at all. Sure, Beverly seemed loads nicer than Max had, but she also seemed deeply troubled and kept to herself a hundred percent of the time. He wouldn't have been surprised to hear his dream was real, if she told him that herself, that was.  
It wasn't until school got out that Will had mustered up the courage to approach her.  
“Hey, um, it's Beverly, right?” he asked, attempting to start conversation. He wasn't really good at that, of course, since he never did this.  
She turned to face him, her eyes boring into his. He noticed how her eyes seemed to harbour a great sadness, as if a piece of her was missing. “Yeah. You're Will, right?”  
Will nodded. “Yes. I was wondering if you had time to talk? I'm probably about to scare you away but my party and I agreed I need to tell you something.”  
“I… I think I have some time, yes,” she replied suspiciously.  
Will motioned for her to follow him towards the benches where everyone else was. To his relief, she did.  
“So to avoid keeping you too long, I'll just get to the point. I've had the exact same dream the last three nights now, and you've been in it.”  
“I'm sorry, what?”  
“I have this dream where you're in a sewer system with six boys, and you guys are fighting this thing… You call it ‘It’. But it's weird to me because I dreamed it two nights before I met you.”  
Beverly looked like she'd a ghost; no, like she had seen something far worse than a ghost. “I…” She couldn't seem to get a full sentence out.  
“I have some drawings from the dream, if you want to see them,” Will offered.  
“I need to sit down first…” the redhead responded breathlessly. The Party members moved so she could, and she did so with a shaky intake of breath.  
Will got out the drawings and handed them to her. She looked at each of them, seeming to grow whiter with each page.  
“These are… My friends from Maine. The Losers Club, we called ourselves.”  
She pointed to one of the kids Will had drawn. “That's Bill,” her hand moved, “And Ben,” again, she pointed to another “And Richie,” this movement continued as she said “And Eddie and Mike and Stan. We were fighting It; Pennywise,” she stated.  
Will furrowed his brow. “My dream… It was real, then?”  
“Yes. Yes, Yes, Yes. We did fight It, and It went away, but we don't know if we beat It. I'd been trying to forget it all. You reminded me,”  
Max and El shared a look of interest and concern. Will nodded. “I see. Do you know why I might have dreamed that?”  
Bev shook her head. “No idea. It's been a few years now, Will. I really don't know why that would have happened. I was eleven, now I'm nearly fourteen. You and I have nothing in common. Why is a great question,”  
Beverly seemed to ramble when she was scared or confused or worried; something bound to kill someone who could have been saved one day. Dustin was the one who put a hand on her shoulder to quiet her endless seam of words.  
“Beverly, it's alright if you don't know. We were just wondering,” he'd said to her in a way that reminded her of her down times with The Losers. She took a deep breath and nodded.  
“Okay. Sorry,”  
Will heard a car honk and saw Jonathan in his car, inching along the curb. “Hey man; you ready?”  
Will nodded. “One second!” he replied to his big brother before turning to Beverly. “If you want, we can talk about it more tomorrow. The school year is nearly over and then we'll have even more time to figure this out. See you all tomorrow,”  
Then he went to go get in the car. He didn't wait for a response, but he somehow knew he wouldn't get one. It was just a feeling, really.  
“Who's the new kid in the group?” Jonathan asks.  
“A transfer student from Maine. Her name is Beverly,”  
Will looked out the window as The Police played from the tape player in the car.  
“She having a hard time or something?”  
“Or something, I guess. It's hard to explain,”  
“Harder to explain than how you came back from the dead?”  
“Maybe…”  
Jonathan knew by Will's short responses that this was something he probably wouldn't open up about for a few days, if he ever did. Still, he was curious as to what his little brother meant by It's hard to explain. That statement did not fare well in the Byers family, who had seen Will go missing for a week, only to be found nearly dead in the Upside Down, then had him serve as a host for what his friends called the Mind Flayer. It had been a while, but everyone was still on edge whenever Will seemed even slightly off character.  
Will was fine, perhaps better than fine, but he understood why everyone would be worried after last time. They were worried that the Upside Down and the creatures inhabiting it were still out there somewhere. There had been one in the Byers’ fridge at one point. Joyce had screamed bloody murder, which scared Will and Jonathan both. They had run out to see what happened and there it was; a dead and frozen demodog lying sprawled on the ground. Will could've sworn he heard Jonathan mutter “What the fuck..”, but he'd been thinking that himself so he couldn't be too sure.  
When they pulled up to the Byers house and Jonathan parked the car, Will smiled. He was glad to be home after such a long day. Plus, he had a lot to think about.  
“Before we go in, can I ask you something?” Jonathan asked.  
“Sure,”  
“What was up yesterday morning?”  
“I had a dream. A really vivid one about these seven kids who saved their town. It left me with a lot of drawing ideas when I woke up from it and I couldn't sleep until I drew them,” Will explained. Everything he said had been true, though he left out the details that would cause a freak out.  
After that, they went inside. Joyce wasn't home from work yet, but she would be in a hour, just as always. The boys went to their respective rooms to set their stuff down, then had a snack together and spent their hour alone just talking about whoever came to their minds.


	3. III

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will Byers has always been different, but when he has a dream about seven kids who defeated an evil they called IT and suddenly the girl shows up in Hawkins, he is more concerned about what's up with him. He speaks to this girl, Beverly, and with her help he unites The Party with her group, The Losers, to save Hawkins, and perhaps the world, from a greater evil.

There was a letter in the mail. It was going out today. The redhead who put it in the box hoped it would reach Maine by the end of the week.  
Bill Denbrough, you are the only person whose address I could remember, but I want every Loser to read this.  
I am in a small town in Indiana called Hawkins. There's a boy here named Will Byers who has had the same dream the past three nights. He showed me some drawings. It's a dream about how we killed IT or at least temporarily defeated it. I think something big is going to happen. Convince your parents to come here for the summer, please. We, Will, his friends, and I, can't do this alone. I especially know we’ll need help. Hawkins has the same feeling as Derry, everyone, and it's not a good feeling. It's the feeling that someone could die at any moment. People have died here before.  
I hope this letter reaches you well and you all are able to come to Hawkins to help us. I love you all dearly and am sorry I had to leave. I miss you. Hopefully when summer comes I’ll see you.  
Much love,  
Beverly Marsh  
That's what she had written. It was short but to the point. She went straight to the mailbox and made sure it was going to be sent that day. It was; thankfully for everyone. After that, Bev Marsh went off to school. Her new friends were waiting for her there.  
“Hey, Beverly!” Will had called when he saw her. She waved back to him and jogged the rest of the way over.  
“I put a letter to Maine in the mail this morning. Not sure when it’ll get there, but it's sent,” she said without another word before.  
“That's great! So we'll have backup when the bad things happen!”  
“Dustin, how are you so sure something bad is going to happen?” Mike questioned.  
“Come on Mike, everyone knows that you don't just have the same dream three nights in a row and have one of the people in it show up at your school on the second day you had that dream. It's a sign, and the Byers family is a magnet for bad ones!”  
Will looked down. It was true that his family had been the target of two Upside Down attacks, but it was mostly him. It wasn't fun to think about though.  
“Dustin! That was kinda rude,” Mike retorted. Will was glad Mike always seemed to have his back.  
“Sorry, then,”  
“It's fine, Dustin. You're right, anyway,” Will piped up.  
Max was skating to join them. Once she made it over, they all headed to their first class.

It was another long day, but they managed to enjoy themselves regardless. Beverly spent lunchtime getting to know The Party members and letting them get to know her. She was actually a pretty fun person, and Eleven (Jane) was probably more interested than anyone else.  
There was much laughter, and even more smiling.  
“Do you guys think tomorrow we could all get together at one of our houses?” Max had asked, “I mean, not mine, but someone's?”  
Everyone seemed to love the idea. “We could go to mine or Will's, I'm sure.” Mike responded. They usually went to these two households since their parents were either the most open minded (Byers) or the least caring (Wheeler). They could definitely arrange something.  
They decided that since there was seven of them, Mike’s place would be better. Once that was decided, they were hyper the rest of the day.  
Will was enjoying himself, but he wanted to go home at the same time that day. He loved his friends (Some of them too much, he often thought), and yet he had a lot on his mind. Like there was someone who was trying to tell him something through a strange telepathy.  
“I want to understand this: Who are you?”  
It wasn't Will’s own thoughts; he knew that much. It was someone else entirely. He didn't know who, or what, though.

I want to understand this: Who are you? William ‘Bill’ Denbrough thought to himself, skimming a book about dreams and sitting in the library.  
“I-it doesn't make s-s-sen-sense, Ben. It make-makes no goddamn s-sense-Fuck- who has the same dream three nights in a row?”  
“I don't know, Bill. I really don't know. I'm telling you, if anything, it's the turtle,”  
Bill groaned. “If it was the t-turtle, I would be able to t-tell,”  
“I'm just saying!”  
The boys were given a warning look from the librarian. They decided to pack up shop and take the conversation to the other Losers. They gave the books up to the main desk, grabbed their backpacks, and were off like that.  
They had parked their bikes outside. The two mounted them when Bill’s head went spinning.  
“Will Byers. I am Will Byers and there is a weird voice in my head,”  
“Bill, you okay?”  
“W.. What? No. I jus-just heard s-something. In my head. A boy. Byers. Will. Dunno,”  
“You're not making a lick of sense,”  
“I know,”

Will Byers. I am Will Byers and there is a weird voice in my head. Will thought silently. He needed to get a grip on himself. Hearing voices in his head was the last thing he needed before Beverly’s friends came out in the summer.  
“I’m the one with a weird voice in my head,”  
Shut up or tell me who you are.  
“Bill Denbrough,”  
“Beverly?”  
“What's up, Will?” Beverly inquired.  
“Wasn't one of your friends named Bill?”  
“Yes. He's the one I sent the letter to,”  
“He's in my head,”  
“What?”  
“I can hear him in my head. Like telepathy,”  
Beverly looked only slightly surprised, like she had seen this sort of thing before. It irked Will more than this voice in his head.  
Why, why, why couldn't he have a single normal year, he wondered. First it was the Demogorgon, then it was the Mind Flayer, now it's this group of kids from Maine who fought a damned clown that shapeshifted. It was like he really was a magnet for bad signs, like Dustin said. It was like he was himself a bad sign.

“What the hell?” Bill wondered aloud. There was a voice in his head; A boy; A Will Byers.  
“I could say the same this to you, Bill,” Ben stated.  
“S-s-sorry. Let's just go,”  
And they did. They mounted their bikes and went searching the small town for Richie, Eddie, Stan, and Mike. Beverly would have been on that list, but she left two years before. She'd probably forgotten all about them, they all figured. They hadn't forgotten about her, though. They missed her, in fact.  
But nonetheless, the boys found the rest of their group and they went to the Barrens.  
Bill took a moment to shout curses into the air to stop his stutter temporarily before cutting to the punch. “There's a voice in my head,”  
“There's a what in your who?” Richie Tozier asked without a beat between the statements.  
“Voice. My head,”  
“Well you could have not told us so we don't have to turn you into an asylum,” Stan commented.  
Bill sighed. “No, it’s a person. A real person. Like… Like we're speaking telepathically,”  
“Are you kidding us, Bill? Telepathically? Might as well say Beverly didn't forget us and sent a letter!” Eddie exclaimed. That cut everyone deep; they never talked about Bev anymore. It set them on edge and seemed to pull them apart every time they talked about it.  
“I'm not kidding! I'm s-s-seri-serious!” One could tell Bill was frustrated at his friends for not believing him just by his stutter getting even worse.  
“Your friend Beverly says hi,”  
You're with her?  
“Yeah. She sent you something. You'll see soon,”  
“I-if you guys don't believe me, then I-I’ll show you… When Bev’s let-letter comes.”


	4. IV

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will Byers has always been different, but when he has a dream about seven kids who defeated an evil they called IT and suddenly the girl shows up in Hawkins, he is more concerned about what's up with him. He speaks to this girl, Beverly, and with her help he unites The Party with her group, The Losers, to save Hawkins, and perhaps the world, from a greater evil.

A week passed and two new ones began before The Party and Beverly heard anything back from the Losers. It was a envelope with six separate letters: One from Bill, one from Ben, one from Mike, one from Stan, one from Richie, and one from Eddie. Each of them had varying responses.  
Bill said he'd need to convince his parents in the upcoming months for him to be able to make it out there. Ben had said something similar, but had added that he could convince his mother easier than most. Mike said he wasn't sure; he hadn't ever left Derry and didn't really plan to, but he'd consider talking to his family. Stan was skeptical he could, but if Bill was able to his chances would likely rise. Richie's response was simple, he'd go regardless of what his parents said. Eddie figured he could get his mom to let him go since he'd stood up to her more and more recently.  
There was seven months to correspond and figure out how many of them would come. Bev wrote back immediately, and Will made sure everyone else did the same to include in her envelope. They did, and it was sent out the day they got the letter.  
Another two weeks and the Losers had sent another response, and so the pattern continued. Sometimes there would be less letters than the next, but almost every time everyone had written a response. They started to get to know each other, and when two months had passed and four sets of letters with each group, they felt as though they'd known each other for years.  
Will and Bill’s telepathy conversations continued as well, though mostly to let each other know when the letters had sent and been received. There had been a time they talked so long that they got headaches so bad it made them lightheaded. Will passed out and everyone freaked out. Bill got sick and ended up having everyone who saw convinced he'd gotten drunk. They agreed to keep conversation to a minimum after that, and instead wrote each other in their letters.  
More correspondences between the groups led from November to April. There were two months before summer, when the Losers hoped to come out to Indiana. Bill, Ben, Richie, and Eddie had their trips on lockdown. Stan was still working on it, as was Mike, but it was not for lack of trying. They had continually talked to family about it.

Stan finally pulled the trump card. “Bill’s going…”  
His father liked Bill, and he knew it. He may be a Jew, but that didn't mean he wasn't a manipulative person when he needed to be. And this, going to Indiana, was a need; nearly everyone else was going. He needed this.  
“I'll think about it.” was his father’s reply.  
Stan knew that meant he'd get a last minute yes.

Mike was about ready to run. He'd never left Derry and neither had most of his family, but he knew that everyone else was going to go, and he'd be alone all summer. His uncle, though, was a stubborn man, and convincing him that it was important was near impossible.  
“If I can't go with your permission, I'll go without, uncle, and I can't promise I'll be back,” he'd threatened finally.  
That was all it took.

It was the last week of May now, and when Will started missing days of school more frequently, people started to get concerned. Mike, of course, was the one who went to the Byers’ house each time the boy missed. This was the third time this week, and it was Thursday.  
Mike knocked on the door, waiting for an answer. It was Joyce, who had taken the day off of work to make sure Will was okay.  
“Mike; I was wondering when you'd come. Will's not good. He keeps asking for you,” was the first thing out of her mouth as she beckoned him inside. Mike wasted no time going to Will's room. Will looked pale, like he could collapse at any moment. Mike sat on the edge of his bed.  
“Hey, Will. Your mom said you were asking for me. Are you feeling okay?”  
“N.. Not really,” His voice was quiet; frail. Mike sighed quietly.  
“I think… I think the bad things know it's almost Summer. Have any more letters come?”  
“Just one. People asking how you were. Stan said he'd be coming. The other Mike did too,” Mike replied.  
“That's… Good. Could you lay over here or come closer? My ears… Everything… Not working right,”  
He laid down, making sure to face Will so he could hear him better. “This good?”  
“Yeah,” Will nodded slightly, “Good,”  
“You better make it through this, Will. Last time was… Too close. I don't wanna lose you; you're my best friend after all,”  
Will turned his head to look at Mike and smiled. “I'll make it, Mike, I promise,”  
“Just wanted to say I hope you're okay. School ends tomorrow for us. We’ll be there in a month,”  
Thanks, Bill. I'll hold out until then.  
“Bill just told me they'll be here in a month or so,”  
“That's soon. Good,”  
“Yeah,”  
Joyce came into the doorway, ad Mike turned to look at her. “Your mom called. Said she wants you home soon,” Joyce said.  
“Okay,” he turned to Will. “I have to go. I'll be back tomorrow.”  
“Bye, Mike,”  
Mike paused before sitting up. Once he was sitting, he leaned down and very softly kissed Will's cheek. He wasn't sure why he did it, but he did. “Bye, Will,”  
With that, he left the Byers home and biked to his house.

“Hey Loser,”  
A redhead was biking next to Mike. He laughed for a moment, but quickly became somber again. He still cracked a joke, though.  
“Aren't you the Loser here?”  
“I mean, yeah, but you totally stopped by your boyfriend’s house again today so you're a sore loser,”  
“My what?” Mike asked, slipping up for a split second.  
“Your friend,” Bev tried to cover up her mistake, but giggled and gave herself away.  
“Pretty sure you said boyfriend, which he is not. We're just really, really good friends who've known each other a long time,”  
“Sure,”  
“Never mind. What brings you this way?”  
“I was biking for a breath of fresh air and happened to see you,” she answered, pushing harder on the pedals of her bike as they started up a hill.  
“Oh, alright,”  
“Headed home?”  
“Yeah,”  
They were silent after that. There really wasn't much to talk about, and any time Will wasn't okay Mike seemed to quiet down a lot, leaving even less conversation than before. Beverly knew he was anxious for the Losers to get here; he probably hoped that they would know what to do for Will.  
“Will told me they'd be here in a month,” Mike said to her as they neared his house. She knew who he meant immediately.  
“Really? That's good,” she replied. They stopped by the Wheeler’s mail box.  
“Yeah. I gotta head inside. Bye, Beverly,”  
“Bye, Mike,”  
He walked his bike around the house and came inside through the basement, like he had started doing out of habit. Once inside, he sighed.  
“Mike, is that you?” his mom called. He could hear the steps as she came down to see.  
“Yeah, mom, it's me,” he responded just before she came into view. He rubbed his eyes just in case he'd started tearing up; he wanted to be alone and if his mom saw him upset she'd be constantly checking on him every moment he was home.  
“I'm gonna head up to my room until dinner. I have some schoolwork I didn't get done and I'd like to try and write some more of our next DnD campaign, even if I don't know when our party is getting together since Will's so sick,”  
“Alright, honey. If you need anything let me know,”  
“I will,” he said, knowing he'd already not done so.


	5. V

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will Byers has always been different, but when he has a dream about seven kids who defeated an evil they called IT and suddenly the girl from it shows up in Hawkins, he is more concerned about what's up with him. He speaks to this girl, Beverly, and with her help he unites The Party with her group, The Losers, to save Hawkins, and perhaps the world, from a greater evil.

“How much longer?” Dustin whined. They'd been out of school for two weeks now, and today was the day the Losers were coming. They knew this because Bill had told Will who had then in turn told Mike, and Mike told the rest of the group.  
“Dustin! We. Don't. Know!” Lucas responded, making the face he always did when stating the obvious.  
“It'll be soon. I can tell,” Beverly said to them. She had always felt more complete the closer they were, and though she couldn't explain it, she knew at least some of them were close. She didn't know how close until a five seater car pulled over and four kids got out before it took off in a U turn on the road.  
The kid who had been in the passenger seat was of average height, and his eyes squinted so that they were somewhat shielded from the sun of the early afternoon. From the back row was a tall, lanky boy with glasses and messy black hair, contrasted by a short brunett who appeared to be telling the taller one off, and finally a boy with curly light brown hair, not quite sandy but not the typical shade of brown people usually saw.  
“BILL! RICHIE! EDDIE! STAN!!” Beverly shouted, running towards them. She tackled them all in a hug. “Oh my god I've missed you since I remembered you! I'd forgotten, though I can't say why I-”  
“B-B-Beverly, it-it's alright! We're j-just g-g-g-glad to s- se-see you,”  
“Bev, I brought a pack of your favourite, if you still smoke!”  
“Bev, we've missed you!”  
“Long time no see, Beverly.”  
“Oh, oh, come on, you've GOT to meet everyone! Will isn't here; he's home sick, but everyone else is!” She led the four over to the Party.  
“Guys! These are some of the Losers Club,” Beverly started.  
“I'm B-Bill,” said the one who had been sitting in the front. This was the boy who had been talking to Will, most of the group realised.  
“Yo, bastards and bitches, The name’s Richie Tozier but you can call me Dick!” the boy with glasses did a rather obnoxious flourish and a couple people, like Max and Dustin, laughed quietly.  
“Beep beep, Richard. Besides, who even calls you Dick?” replied the shortest of the group, the brunett boy.  
“Eds, everyone calls me Dick. Except Stan. He calls me Dickhead. And sometimes you-”  
“I repeat, beep fuckin’ beep,”  
“So I take it you're Eddie, and that must be Stan,” Mike piped up, attempting to stop the bickering. They all nodded with various expressions.  
“How'd you guess?” Stan questioned.  
“Will told me about you guys based on what Bill’s said to him.”  
“Oh, th-that's c-c-coo-cool! Fuck- I take it you're Mike Wheeler?” Bill replied. Mike nodded in response.  
“Wait there's two Mikes now?” Richie asked, looking thoroughly concerned and disturbed at this revelation.  
“Yeah, ‘Dickhead’. We've known this,” Stan huffs, “We've known for a while,”  
“Ohh yeah huh? Whoops. Forgot. How are we gonna get around that? Loser Mike and Party Mike? Mike One and Mike Two?”  
“OR, we could just call them by their last names,” Eddie suggested, “You know, Wheeler and Hanlon,”  
“Okay, never mind that. You guys haven't been properly introduced to the rest of the party,” Bev cut in.  
Before anyone could say anything, though, a truck stopped on the road and a tall boy with broad shoulders and dark skin stepped out of the car, duffle bag in hand.  
A chorus of “MIKE!!” was echoed across all of the Losers, though no one quite as excited as Beverly, who reenacted her running hug which she had done when the first group came.  
“Dude, you're sharing names with him? I'd go hide in a hole if I were you. He seems awesome,” Max told Mike Wheeler. He rolled his eyes.  
“We're not competing so I see no reason to hide in a hole, Max,”  
Eleven chuckled at the bickering as the group came together again.  
“Okay. Now that… Almost everyone is here, why don't we continue that introduction thing?”  
“Hey. I'm Max, came from California a while back. Nice to meet you guys,”  
“I'm Jane, or El. Short for Eleven. Long story, I'm sure you guys will learn as you go. Pleasure,”  
“I'm Lucas. ‘Nuff said.”  
“Like Bill said, I'm Mike Wheeler. Nice to meet you a-”  
“BEN! GUYS, IT’S BEN! LOOK!” Beverly yelled, totally cutting off Mike.  
The boy was getting out of a Volkswagen Beetle and thanking whoever was driving. He went around to the back and got out his backpack and a huge suitcase which looked as if he'd packed everything he owned into.  
“That's… Ben?” Dustin asked, seemingly awestruck.  
“Yes! That's Ben!” Beverly ran to give him a hug, just as she had with the others.  
“Man, I wish Will were here,” Dustin muttered.  
Mike W. nodded. “Yeah. Me too,”  
“Beverly, I've missed you, but was that necessary? I almost fell!” Ben was saying to Beverly as they walked back to the rest of the group.  
Beverly laughed. “Yes,”  
“So… Ben, huh?” The Wheeler asked. Ben nodded.  
“The one and only. Unlike Mike. You're the other one, aren't you?”  
Mike heaved a heavy sigh. “Yep,”  
Lucas chuckled. “Why don't we call the Mikes ‘Wheeler’ and.. Hanlon, isn't it?”  
“Yes. It's Hanlon,” the Derry dweller replied with a beaming smile.  
“Okay, then, Wheeler and Hanlon! There, problem solved,” Lucas concluded.  
Everyone seemed to agree that it was a great idea, then proceeded to introduce themselves.

Will, on the contrary to the rest of The Party and The Losers Club, was even worse than before. His health was deteriorating faster than ever. Joyce had started taking days off of work after no doctor could diagnose what was wrong. She could tell it was going to be another attack. The Upside Down was coming for him again, and she wanted to stop it. She wanted to make it go away. Unfortunately, fate and life were not so kind as to give her these liberties.  
Will had once said it was because he shined. Not shone, but shined. He was specific about it when he said it. He was a shiner; the turtle had said so. She thought perhaps it was some sort of a feverish outburst, but Will knew better. He had the Shine.  
He lay in bed, listening to his friends. He was the only one who could hear them; it was through his connection to them. They seemed to get along nicely. He was glad. A hot flash came; something big and dark. It was coming for them. It was going to kill everyone. Like the Mind Flayer wanted, but worse; so much worse.

It's going to win, he thought…


End file.
